


Birthday party

by LeeGale



Series: Tokyo Heroes [5]
Category: Death Note (Anime & Manga), Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Alcohol, F/F, F/M, How Do I Tag, M/M, Pining, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:48:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23682667
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeeGale/pseuds/LeeGale
Summary: It's Kaneki's birthday! And his friends throw him a party...
Relationships: Amon Koutarou/Kaneki Ken | Sasaki Haise, Kirishima Touka/Kosaka Yoriko, L/Yagami Light, Nishino Kimi/Nishio Nishiki
Series: Tokyo Heroes [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1691059
Comments: 4
Kudos: 5





	Birthday party

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know the legal drinking age in Japan, but for the sake of this, I'm pretending it's 20.

Kaneki smiled at Watari when he allowed him through the backdoor of L's tower a few days later. After they had finished with BB and Porpora (which was still a very sore spot), L had decided that Japan would be a suitable base of operations for a while. Of course, he and Watari still travelled to cases elsewhere, but they stayed in Japan most of the time. Matt, Mello and Near had all moved in with them, and Light was found there often. Light couldn't do cases outside of Tokyo, not until he had finished his education, so L and Watari had decided it would be good to stay with him. At first, Matt, Mello and Near had been jealous, but then L had explained that Light was not destined to be the next L, but rather the next Watari. Light had agreed that he preferred the role, stating that he liked working as an assistant more than a leader. Everyone had been sceptical at first, but Light had eventually explained that he didn't want the role because he knew it wasn't his place, and that he wasn't sure if he was even good enough. Still, L and Watari trained him to take a role similar to Watari's, but with a little more influence over the actual workings of the case.  
When Kaneki got to the lounge everyone else was in, he was greeted by the sight of a cake, a pile of presents, a banner and a large chunk of his friends. They all spotted him at the same time, expressing their joy at seeing him in their own ways.  
"Ken!" Matt yelled, rushing over and pulling him into a tight hug, "Happy birthday!"  
Kaneki chuckled a little, hugging back just as tightly before a few others joined the hug (specifically Hinami, Annushka, Lilliya, Hide and Kimi). The group stayed like that for a while, only letting go when Watari reminded them that Kaneki needed to talk to the rest of his guests. They all grumbled for a second before pulling away, letting Kaneki go say hi to everyone else. Once he had, Watari appeared by his side with a bottle of cider. The twenty-year-old raised an eyebrow but accepted it, opening it with a twist of his wrist and taking a sip.  
"Happy birthday, Ken," Watari said, smiling softly. Kaneki smiled back at him, relaxing as he let the atmosphere relax him.  
"Thanks," he replied, letting himself lean against Watari's side in a rare display of affection. The pair stood like that for a long moment before L walked over, already tipsy.  
"Wanna play a game?" he asked, smirking. Kaneki rolled his eyes slightly, sending a look up to Watari before refocusing on his friend.  
"What game?" he inquired, watching as L grinned (and damn, it was good to see the other relax. It happened so rarely, it was an amazing sight).  
"Truth or dare!" L replied, but Watari spoke up before Kaneki could reply.  
"Why doesn't Ken cut his cake and open his presents first?" he suggested, and L pouted for half a second before grinning.  
"Each layer is a different flavour! The top is strawberries and cream!" he exclaimed, grabbing Kaneki's hand and tugging him over to where the cake was. The ghoul went easily, smiling fondly at his tipsy friend as Watari called for everyone to gather around the cake. The older man then proceeded to light all of the candles, turn the lights down and start singing 'Happy Birthday'. As everyone sang, Kaneki didn't feel the usual embarrassment he did at having people sing to him. Instead, he felt warm, happy and loved... He looked around at all his friends, his family, and the feeling grew...  
Once everyone was finished singing, Kaneki blew out the candles, a single wish running through his head. Matt and Kimi tried to ask him what it was, but he told them that if he did it wouldn't come true. They both playfully pouted at that, but they didn't press, so Kaneki turned back to the cake. He accepted the knife Watari passed him before carefully cutting a slice from the top layer. He put it on the plate Watari held out, taking the plate and passing it to L, who grinned and thanked him before going to sit on a couch. Kaneki made quick work of cutting the cake and handing it out (making sure his ghoul friends had slightly smaller, more manageable slices) before getting himself a slice. He turned to look over at where everyone was sat, rolling his eyes slightly when he realised that the only available seat was between Koutarou and L. He walked over and sat, smiling at Koutarou before L stole his attention.  
"Ken..." there was a smirk gracing the older man's face, and Kaneki raised a curious eyebrow at him, "You're pretty."  
"So you've told me literally every time you're drunk, Leon," the newly twenty-year-old replied, rolling his eyes before taking a small bite of his slice of cake. After BB and Porpora had revealed his identity to Koutarou and Akira when they were being held hostage, L had allowed them to know, but none of Kaneki's friends from Anteiku did, so he kept using Leon when around them.  
"I'm not wrong," L countered, smiling brightly as Kaneki rolled his eyes, "You're not the prettiest boy here though..."  
"I know exactly who you think the prettiest boy is, and I think now is a good time to cut you off before you embarrass yourself," the younger said, taking the bottle L held and putting it on the table in front of them. L pouted and looked like he wanted to argue, so Kaneki continued, "The sooner you eat your cake, the sooner I can open my presents and the sooner we can play truth or dare as you asked."  
That made L perk up as he ate his second slice of cake. Kaneki rolled his eyes before returning to his cake. He soaked in the ambience of the room, smiling as he overheard his friends talk amongst each other. Touka was asking Nishio advice on how to ask Yoriko out (Kaneki had actually hit it off with her after he had cleared up the mess of that one day Touka couldn't go to school cause she was ill and Kaneki had been at her's to see how she was. He knew how Touka felt about the beta and hadn't wanted to get in the way of them. After that, Yoriko and Kaneki frequently met up to cook together, much to Touka's annoyance). Matt and Mello were doing their usual flirting while Near watched them fondly. Watari was discussing work with the former Kira team. Light was oblivious to the blush on the omega's cheek (or blaming it on the alcohol). Everyone from Antieku, except Shuu, Nishio, Touka and Hinami, were laughing about something. Hinami was chatting away with Annushka and Lilliya, who had both improved their Japanese enough to hold decent conversations. Shuu was... well, he was staring at Kaneki like a lovesick puppy, but that was just what he did. And Koutarou and Akira were muttering together, facing each other. The last sight made Kaneki's heart squeeze in his chest, but he didn't get the chance to dwell on that.  
"Ken! Open your presents!" Matt called, grinning at Kaneki, who rolled his eyes and moved to comply. Before he could, however, Watari was in front of him with his first present. He rolled his eyes but took it, thanking Watari and looking down at the gift. The tag said it was from Near, so he smiled at the small teen before carefully unwrapping the present. It was quiet as he did... Kaneki blinked in surprise before grinning when he saw the gift.  
"Are you serious?" he asked, grin widening as he pulled the gift from the last of the wrapping. It was a black leather jacket, soft and supple, but it was what was on the back that made Kaneki so happy. There was a large K, silver with two large, green snakes twining it. Kaneki had been trying to find that jacket for ages after he saw it in a shop in Paris a little over three years ago... He grinned at Near, thanking him before Watari told him to open his next present.  
It continued like that until Kaneki got to his last present. After Near, he got a large rainbow dagger from Matt, then a small, compact butterfly knife with his name engraved in it from Mello, and several books from Watari (all in English, all dark literature). From L, he got two new knives, both of which had black handles but one had silver detailing and the other green. Both were snakes. The entire Kira team (minus L, Watari, Misa and Light) had worked together to get him tickets to see an up-and-coming rock band live in the new year. Misa had got him the entire signed series of the Black Cat manga. Light had got him a copy of Hamlet (the script) and a signed copy of Good Omens -the original book, not the screenplay. That second one had surprised Kaneki, but Light said that he had an internet friend who worked with Terry Pratchet's family and had managed to get a signed copy.   
Akira had got Kaneki a new yoga mat and DVD, as well as offering to work out with him on occasion. Kaneki accepted the offer instantly, grinning. Touka had got him the newest book by an author she thought he'd like (and judging by the blurb, he probably would...). Nishio and Kimi had got him a book with tips on how to ask someone out, which made him blush brightly and stutter out excuses. That had made everyone laugh... Shuu had got him a butterfly knife too, although his was a black blade with silver detailing in a silver case with a green snake, and a silver ring. He said something about the knife being from Kaneki's fans (which confused most of the group but drew fond eye-rolls from those in the know) and the ring was just from him. Kaneki knew what the ring symbolised to Shuu, so he made a point of saying Shuu was an awesome friend (he didn't want to lead the former gourmet on). Next, Annushka and Lilliya pulled out a katana that they had made with the help of Akira. Apparently, the blond had learned to make weapons back at the CCG academy... It was a beautiful piece, the blade smooth and curved perfectly, silver with detailed engravings, the hilt pure black except for the red dragon that danced along one side. Hide had given him a book of pick-up lines, stating that Kaneki was 'too damn single for someone as attractive as him'. That drew a large wave of laughs and agreement...  
The last present was from Koutarou, and it was by far Kaneki's favourite. From someone else, it may have meant nothing, but from Koutarou? Who actually knew about that night? It meant so much...  
"I hate to be rude but... what even is that?" Akira asked, leaning around Koutarou to get a look at the gift. Kaneki glanced at Koutarou, smiling as he pulled the necklace out of the box. Hide gasped at the sight of it, and Kaneki knew that he recognised it...  
"It looks like the necklace my mother left for me after she died... Last time I saw this was..."  
"The night Porpora attacked us when we were kids." Koutarou finished, continuing when everyone seemed confused, "The night Ken reported Porpora for being a ghoul, he attacked us and my brother. At first, it was just Yuri and I, but then Ken found us and Porpora tried to get him... He managed to run away and get the police, but Porpora caught the chain of Ken's necklace. he broke it and Ken hasn't seen it since..."  
"How did you manage to find a replica? It was one of a kind..." Kaneki whispered, looking up at Koutarou as something soft warmed his heart. Kourtarou looked down at him, smiling.  
"It's not a replica. After Porpora and BB last year, I found that in a secret vault at the church. I would have given it to you then, but it needed to be repaired and cleaned and such, so I kept a hold of it until it was ready. It took longer than expected and was only ready last month, so I figured I'd give it to you for your birthday..." he replied, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. Kaneki wanted to launch himself at his mate, to hug and kiss him, but he knew he couldn't do that... Instead, he carefully pressed the necklace into Koutarou's hand and turned.  
"Put it on me?" he asked hesitantly. Koutarou didn't move for half a second and Kaneki worried that he had crossed a boundary, but then Koutarou carefully laid the necklace on Kaneki's neck. His finger's brushed Kaneki's scent gland, which both ignored (Kaneki because he was dying inside at the touch and Koutarou because he was worried he had overstepped) and Koutarou did the clip up. Kaneki looked down at the charm (a simple heart engraved with a silver-eyed, green snake that opened to reveal three snakes, one identical to the one on the outside, one black with green eyes and one green with black eyes, intertwined) before turning to look up at Koutarou.  
"Thank you," he whispered, smiling softly, and Koutarou smiled back. Kaneki could feel the air between them shift, change, crackle with something he couldn't identify. His eyes never left Koutarou's, even as the gap between them seemed to grow smaller with every passing second. Though, he may have been imagining it... It did seem like they were getting closer, the gap between them becoming minuscule...   
A sudden click and flash made the pair jump apart, both blushing brightly as Kaneki turned to glare at whoever had taken a photo. Hide was cursing under his breath and fiddling with his phone, so it was easy to figure out the culprit. Kaneki sighed, shanking his head fondly as he thought. It had seemed like they were going to kiss... He was both happy that Hide had stopped them with his forgetfulness (what would have happened if they had kissed? Koutarou was in love with Akira, anyone with eyes could see that... the kiss would have hurt like hell, a bittersweet hint at what he could never have...) and kinda upset (what if he was wrong? what if he did stand a chance?), but he ignored that in favour of sighing again as he scolded Hide for taking his picture without his permission. Hide grinned, saying he was sorry in the least apologetic tone he could manage, and the moment was lost...  
=-=-=-=-=-=-  
An hour later, the only people remaining at the part were Kaneki, L, Light, Koutarou, Hide and Akira. Everyone else had headed home (or to their rooms, in the case of Watari, Annushka and Lilliya), so the group was spread out across the various couches. Kinda. L was laid with his head in Light's lap on one couch, Hide had his head in Kaneki's lap, Koutarou had his head on Kaneki's shoulder, Hide's body draped across his lap and Akira was dangling over the back of the couch Kaneki, Koutarou and Hide were on. L moved his head enough to look at Kaneki before speaking.  
"Truth or dare?" he slurred slightly, smiling brightly as Kaneki replied with truth, "Have you ever fucked Hide?"  
"Duh," Kaneki replied, the alcohol in his blood making him shameless as Hide squawked, embarrassed, "but only once, just after we both turned eighteen."  
"Ken..." Hide whined, pouting, "I thought we agreed not to talk about that..."  
Kaneki smirked down at him, a teasing lilt in his tone, "Don't be ashamed Hide! It was just one night..."  
"You said night," Akira pointed out, voice soft and a little slow, "Did you do it multiple times or somethin'?"  
Nither Kaneki or Hide said anything, which gave Akira the answer she wanted. She laughed, giggling after a moment, almost falling off of the couch. Kaneki rolled his eyes, letting his head fall onto Koutarou's as he picked his victim.  
"Light, truth or dare?" he asked, taking a moment to think when Light replied dare, "I dare you to tell us a secret you've told no one else!"  
Light, being the only sober person in the room, hesitated before sighing, playing with L's hair as he said, "I'm bisexual."  
Kaneki frowned at that, pouting, "I knew that already, though..."  
"And you were the only person, so shush," Light countered, smiling slightly. L made a displeased noise, pouting up at the alpha.  
"Why did Ken know and I didn't?" he asked, obviously put out by the fact. Light hesitated, but Kaneki replied first.  
"Remember when we were drunk that night when dealing with Rue and Porpora? He came in and we talked 'n you passed out? I figured it out and he asked me not ta say anything..." he stated, earning an understanding noise from L, who told Light to pick someone. The brunette hesitated before asking Koutarou, who picked dare. Light thought for a second before smirking.  
"I dare you to kiss the person you find most attractive on the cheek." his tone was nothing short of mischievous. Even drunk, Kaneki knew that would never be him, so he got ready for the inevitable pain of Koutarou kissing someone else, ready to shove his feelings in a box and-  
There was the quick press of warm lips to his cheek before Koutarou buried his head back into the birthday boy's neck. Kaneki blinked in surprise, his brain lagging behind for a second, before his cheeks burst into flames. He glanced down at Koutarou, who was visibly embarrassed, before smiling and kissing the top of the omega's head. Koutarou looked up, blinking, before smiling and returning his head to its previous spot. The pair were quiet for a long moment, everyone was, but L yawning had Kaneki in 'dad mode' (as Matt called it).  
"We all need sleep," he said, earning displeased groans. He chuckled, rolling his eyes before continuing, "We can stay here, we just need to catch some z's..."  
For a moment, no one spoke, but then they all agreed. Light looked like he was going to pass out as L nuzzled into his lap, but Kankei just shrugged with his free shoulder, unable to do much as Koutarou started to doze off on his shoulder...


End file.
